China Sunergy, Seul Energy, Start Solar Factory in Turkey

Dec. 28 (Bloomberg) -- China Sunergy Co. opened a factory
in Istanbul with Turkish partner Seul Energy Investment Corp. as
it seeks to expand access to European customers.

China Sunergy will make solar modules in a 150-megawatt
production line starting next month, it said yesterday in a
statement. A 100-megawatt solar-cell facility is also being
built and is due to start in March, while 200 megawatts of
production capacity will be moved from China, the company said.

China Sunergy said the plans will make Turkey its biggest
manufacturing base after China, enabling it to “efficiently
serve customers across Europe and even the U.S.” Turkey is
targeting 600 megawatts of solar-power capacity by 2015, up from
fewer than 10 megawatts earlier this year.

“Our cooperation with the strong local partner Seul Energy
will help us capture substantial market share in the region,”
said Stephen Cai, chief executive officer of Nanjing-based China
Sunergy. The partners also plan to invest in other solar
projects in Turkey, where solar parks using locally made panels
command higher electricity prices, according to the statement.